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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bat · lash · mate · chair · prune · press · fall · bank

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. fall — the season
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. press — to push
  5. mate — a partner
  6. bank — for money
  7. fall — to drop
  8. chair — a leader
  9. press — newspapers
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bank — of a river
  14. fall — to drop
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bank — for money
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. mate — a friend
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. mate — to breed
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. press — a publisher
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. bat — in an idiom

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com